The Inside Scoop on Indian Springs Resort
What do you do when you own a spectacular, historic Calistoga resort, but know it could use a little updating? If you’re John and Pat Merchant and your estate is Indian Springs Resort & Spa, you pour $24 million into an expansion and renovation, including adding...
Camp Schramsberg Part 5: The Act of Remuage
Our final day at Camp Schramsberg began with a tour of Schramsberg’s historic caves, followed by a riddling demonstration. What is riddling, you ask? It is the twisting, jolting and gradual inversion of bottles in riddling racks done to gather the bottle fermentation...
Calistoga, A Treasure Trove of Napa Valley Luxury
Calistoga is a gem of a destination located at the top of the Napa Valley, where visitors flock to for its laid-back ambiance. In a paradoxical twist on its bucolic charm, much like a fine jewel, it glitters with elegance, boasting posh retreats, world-class wines and...
Camp Schramsberg Part 4: Pairing Food & Sparkling Wines
“Everyone has blind spots in taste and smell,” Holly Peterson announced before a discussion on cause and effect in pairing food and wines. Most tasters agree that red wine paired with asparagus emits a metallic taste, but sparkling wine is a different story, according...
Peace Out at Aurora Park Cottages
There’s a particular emotion sure to embrace your senses as you pull into the Calistoga hillside driveway of Aurora Park Cottages, and that feeling is one of peace. Beginning with the narrow, tree-lined drive, it’s clear this place is an escape from...
Camp Schramsberg, Part 3: Channeling our Inner Napoleon
Sabrage became popular in France when the army of Napoleon visited many of the aristocratic domains. It was just after the French Revolution and the saber was the weapon of choice of Napoleon’s light cavalry (the Hussars). Napoleon’s spectacular victories...
Camp Schramsberg, Part 2: History
When Hugh Davies announced it was time for dinner, we took our seats at the nearby farmers table where Jacob Schram once sat in 1800. Schram founded the first hillside winery in the Napa Valley in 1862, named it Schramsberg and hired Chinese laborers to pick-axe...
An Unparalleled Harvest Experience at Camp Schramsberg
It was early evening on the close of Labor Day when I parked my car at Schramsberg Vineyards. A five-minute trek up Diamond Mountain led to a clearing where a farmer’s table was set for about 30 dinner guests. Sommeliers, local food-and-beverage managers and...